The Montreal Impact head to face Toronto FC on Wednesday with a lead, but not the one they would have wanted. After jumping out to a huge 3-0 advantage in the first leg of the MLS Eastern Conference finals, the Impact conceded two goals, letting TFC back into the tie. Now it’s a toss-up -- Montreal has the lead, but Toronto has two away goals. A 1-0 or 2-1 win will send the Reds through to MLS Cup final on away goals.
Toronto FC vs. Montreal Impact 2016: Start time, live stream, TV schedule, and 3 things to know
A raucous home crowd and two away goals will have TFC feeling confident, but they start Wednesday’s match down a goal to the Impact.
Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Montreal will like their chance of scoring goals, though. Matteo Mancosu and Ignacio Piatti are red hot, while Didier Drogba might play more of a part in this game. He only had a short cameo on Olympic Stadium’s hard turf, but could play more minutes on BMO Field’s grass.
Both teams will be thrilled that weather is unlikely to be a factor in this game. It won’t get below 45 degrees before the match ends, even if it goes to extra time and penalties. The crowd will be a factor, though, with over 30,000 fans expected to pack the stands on Wednesday night.
Match date/time: Wednesday, Nov. 30, 7 p.m. ET
How to watch online: Fox Sports Go, Fox Soccer 2 Go (U.S.), TSN Go (Canada)
TV: Fox Sports 1 (U.S. -- English), Fox Deportes (U.S. -- Spanish), TSN (Canada -- English), RDS (Canada -- French)
Venue: BMO Field, Toronto, Canada
Make friends: Hang out over at Toronto FC blog Waking The Red and Montreal Impact blog Mount Royal Soccer.
Three things to know
1. How’s the field condition? -- If you’re wondering why this game is being played three days after the Western Conference final, it’s because of the Grey Cup. The CFL championship game was played on this field on Sunday night. Hopefully that doesn’t affect how the pitch plays during this match.
2. Michael Bradley needs to start strong. -- For the first 60 minutes of the first leg, Bradley was easily bypassed and had numerous bad turnovers. Then it looked like a light switch flipped in his head, and he was one of the best players on the pitch for the remainder of the game. TFC would probably like to see him put together a complete 90-minute performance. If he does, they’re likely to win the match.
3. Didier Drogba is the x-factor. -- He’s unlikely to start the game, but if the Impact needs a late goal, they have Drogba to bring off the bench. His contribution against the Red Bulls in the playoffs suggests that he still has a little bit left to give. If TFC puts themselves in a situation where they’re only one goal up in the final 15 minutes, they could come to regret not doing more earlier when Drogba strolls onto the pitch.
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